Yep, I overpaid for the used $40 stock tire jack (useful to have 2 for
tire rotation).  But that was only a drop in the bucket compared to the
other parts I've been overpaying for. Ignorance may be bliss, but it can
be very expensive, too. Challenge is how to learn quickly and efficiently.
140 e-mails a day and a few gegabytes of archives provides a school on the
Internet. I now have a much better understanding of the multi-level
pricing system that we have available, summarized below. The list vendors
are providing a terrific service for us and we need to be very
appreciative.  Takes more research now to optimize price, quality, service
and availability but the value is much better. Seems something like this:

                               New   Reman   used   Price           Selection

  VW dealers                    x       x            HIGHEST          HIGH
  Auto repair shops             x       x     (x)    high,med         high
  Auto parts stores/mail order  x       x            high, med or lo  high
  Wrecking yards               (x)     (x)     x     med or lo        lo?
  List vendors                  x       x      x     med or lo        med
  List vendors specials         x       x      x     lo               lo
  U pick yards                                 x     lo               lo
  JB Weld                                      x     VERY LO         whatever

Cheers,
Tom Neal